Classic toys provide blast from past in Greenwich

Frank MacEachern

Updated 6:04 pm, Saturday, March 3, 2012

Gary Sohmers, of Hudson, Mass., holds a lunch box decorated with the Beatles Yellow Submarine Saturday at an antique toys and coin-operated arcade machines show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center. Sohmers has appeared as an appraiser on the PBS television show "Antiques Roadshow."
Photo: Frank MacEachern

Gary Sohmers, of Hudson, Mass., holds a lunch box decorated with...

At right, Susan Taplin of Glenville points to the robot on a 1960s Lost In Space lunch box during the American antique toy and coin-op show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center, Saturday, March 3, 2012. Taplin said her cousin, Richard Tufeld, was the voice talent for the robot that was known for the famous catchphrase "Danger, Will Robinson!" At left is Taplin's husband, Gary.

Joseph Soucy of Westerly, R.I., holds up a 1955 Lone Ranger lunch box that he was selling for $1,450 during the American antique toy and coin-op show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center, Saturday, March 3, 2012.
Photo: Bob Luckey

John Papa Sr. checks his Grandma fortune-telling machine from the early 1900s that he was selling for $65,000 during the American antique toy and coin-op show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center, Saturday, March 3, 2012.
Photo: Bob Luckey

Fred Franklin of Toledo, Ohio, preps a Bally slot machine that he was selling for $300 during the American antique toy and coin-op show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center, Saturday, March 3, 2012.
Photo: Bob Luckey

Gary Sohmers has seen some unique collectibles in his career as a memorabilia dealer and "Antiques Roadshow" appraiser.

"My job is to find weird things for weird people," Sohmers said.

Plenty of interesting knickknacks and downright treasures -- ranging from a fortune-telling automaton to children's lunch boxes from the 1960s and 1970s, to a poster for the 1971 "The Concert for Bangladesh" and beautifully restored coin-operated jukeboxes selling for thousands of dollars -- were on display Saturday at the American Antique Toy and Coin-Op Show at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center.

Sohmers, 59, said collectibles are driven largely by nostalgia.

"We have a thing called the nostalgia curve," the Hudson, Mass., resident said. "Things can fall off the nostalgia curve when all of a sudden everybody who remembers it, or is nostalgic about it, is either dead or on a fixed income."

The market for cowboy-themed toys and memorabilia -- think the Lone Ranger and Hopalong Cassidy -- is very weak, with people selling their collections and depressing a market that has few buyers.

"Everything related to cowboys is very, very soft," he said. "That audience is now aging, and they are putting that stuff out for sale because they don't want it anymore, and there is nobody buying it who is nostalgic for it."

However, cowboy items in excellent condition will still attract good prices, Sohmers said.

"The really mint condition pieces will still bring the money. Anything below mint condition is just a toy now," he said. "Also, characters like Popeye, Orphan Annie and Howdy Doody are dropping off the nostalgia curve, but things like the Beatles are still extremely strong. Anything with the '60s and '70s is still very desirable."

Children's metal lunch boxes decorated with logos or pictures from popular television shows or other symbols from pop culture remain hot items, Sohmers said. On Saturday, the second day of the two-day collectibles show, he was selling a 1969 lunch box splashed with the Beatles Yellow Submarine album cover.

A "Lost in Space" lunch box drew the attention of Glenville resident Susan Taplin, who was overjoyed to see the Robot from the show on the lunch box.

Her cousin, Richard Tufeld, voiced the character on the show, said Taplin, who was at the show with her husband Gary.

Tufeld, who died Jan. 22 at the age of 85, was a radio and television announcer who was well known for voice work as the Robot and its famous catchphrase, "Danger, Will Robinson!"

The couple not only have an interest in memorabilia and arcade machines, but both made careers out of it.

Trained as an architect, Gary, 70, increasingly became interested in pinball and arcade machines until he began restoring antique arcade and musical machines full time. He met Susan while both worked at United Business Interiors in Los Angeles.

The couple moved to Greenwich in 1984.

Penny arcade machines were developed in the late 1800s and early 1900s not only as a way to entertain, but more importantly to get every last penny from customers, Susan said.

"At the turn of the last century, people finally had enough money in their pocket that they had change," she said. "The proprietors were determined that before you would leave their store having spent all your change."

The machines were beautiful in addition to being functional, Susan said. European craftsmen who immigrated to America around the early 1900s poured their talents into designing and building the machines, she said.

"You see these machines that take one penny, yet they have these gorgeous castings, these beautiful woods, these incredible designs to them because these were European craftsmen who took pride in their work," Susan said. "You don't see that kind of craftsmanship now."

Craftsmanship doesn't come cheap. One of the more unusual items for sale was a fortune-telling automaton that John Papa was selling for $65,000.

That's right -- 65 large.

"I just decided two days ago to sell it. I have three boys in college," he said about the fortune teller that he bought in a Massachusetts coffee shop 25 years ago. "When we talk rare, there are only four of these."

When a coin is dropped into the machine, the fortune teller's head and eyes move while her hand sweeps over the cards in front of her. A cat on her shoulder also moves during until a fortune-telling card is spit out.

"They're all creepy," he said of fortune-telling machines. "This one is particularly creepy."

For those who are thinking of making some investments -- maybe not $65,000 -- Sohmers said investors should keep an eye on Star Wars material and early computer-related items because people who were teenagers and preteens during that time are now looking back to their youth and collecting memorabilia from that time.

"'77-'83 Star Wars stuff is a great investment. It keeps going up," he said. "Action figures is the big thing from that time period. I think down the road it is going to be computers, computer games and toys from the computer generation."